My supervisor just jumped me with some good news--I got an 8% raise and a promotion! This is especially impressive since we didn't have any money in our coffers for promotions this quarter--my supervisor doesn't know where they got the cash, but I found out the engineers I support were doing some covert lobbying for my raise, so apparently that helped.
What does this mean? Money-wise, this means I have about $220 more to work with a month. A year ago, this wouldn't have excited me, because I spent money so flagrantly I wouldn't have noticed the extra $220. Sad but true. These days, it means I'll pay down $2,500 more debt next year. This really balances out last month--I feel great. Coincidentally, I'm throwing a small party at my place tonight (a conglomeration of friends' birthdays) so I'll use this as an excuse to relax.
And some more good news? My supervisor told me that they've sorted through the legal matters, and if I get caught in the headcount reduction, I get 8 months of pay! Okay, I'm probably not getting laid off, especially with the recent promotion, but I wouldn't argue the severance package.
Raise and Promotion!
September Financial Roundup
My hiatus from blogging stressed me out. I tried to pretend that I was enjoying myself, but it was less like a vacation, and more like I stopped brushing my teeth for two weeks.
Here's to good financial hygiene!
Nobody at work is talking about the upcoming headcount reduction. The details are slowly eeking out, but it's pretty quiet. We have a month to mull things over. If I get canned, right now it looks like I will get two months of regular pay, and then another two-weeks of compensation, plus my year-end bonus, and I don't know what that's gauged at. My group recently had an analyst move out who hasn't been back filled, and that will count towards the general bloodletting. It will likely mean they won't take anyone else from our group, but nothing is certain.
I normally get my monthly finance update out on the 15th, and I know this is a couple of weeks late. I was depressed that I slipped this month, however, and I didn't want to talk about my money issues. Before I get to the bad, here's some good news:
I am officially done with my old landlord!
He gave me my entire deposit back! Well, he didn't give me the required interest, but that was only $5. He sent me a letter detailing everything that he intended to take off my deposit (as I expected, it was the entire amount, plus a bill for other "damages"), but he decided not to, out of "the goodness of his heart." I would show you the actual letter, but I gave in to a childish impulse and burned it after I cashed the check. However, his return of my deposit had nothing to do with the "goodness of his heart," it was because I went on the offensive before I moved out. He had an agent (a friend) come and review the house upon move-out, and I made the agent sign off on the below document (click to expand):
With this letter, my landlord received a copy of Minnesota's rent laws, an explanation of the applicable portions of the law concerning what a landlord can deduct from a deposit (from FindLaw.com), and an email from an attorney from Home Line, which (from their site), "provides free legal... services so that tenants throughout Minnesota can solve their own rental housing problems."
I knew that my landlord would try to keep the deposit, so by having his agent sign this, I tied his hands as best I could. I'm surprised it worked, however. I felt like a complete jerk going to this extreme, but now, with everything in the past, I feel really good. My biggest lesson was to avoid situations of this nature, but because my hand was forced, in retrospect I'm glad that I was firm. It went against all my instincts, but it was a great life lesson.
That said...
September Financial Roundup!
Ug. I put a lot of money on the old credit cards. I paid much of it off this week (with my paycheck and returned deposit), but I didn't have the money to cover the $200 car repair. I'll finish paying that next month, and also continue to advance on my debt. It was a disappointment, but last month was crazy. I had to buy a lot to get the apartment up and running, I had a friend's wedding and mandatory bachelor/bachelorette party (we all went out together), and the car repair.
I was able to defer paying my school loans (interest free) because I started school, which helped. In the below snapshot of my finances, you'll see a new row called "BOA TUITION FLOAT." This is tuition that's on my BOA card at 0%, that my company will cover, if I still have a job in a few months. If not, I don't know. I'll start to think of that in a few weeks.
My company won't cover the "fees" that school charges, so I I need to add an additional $115 to the mix. That means my BOA card, which has a 0% APR, is now at $3750. Arg.
Here's the damage:
Oh well. Lifes not all roses. I'll talk about my next financial steps in the days to come.
VP Just Joking Before--Will Actually Fire Us.
I haven't gone through my monthly bills yet. I need to sit down and do some honest revaluation of my finances. I'm sure I've slipped. Also, my area of the company is going through a 'headcount reduction,' or a mass firing, as I prefer to call it. A few weeks ago, our VP said he didn't think it was going to happen, and then they had an all-employee meeting yesterday so he could tell us he forgot to carry the two.
November is the target date.
My VP handled the situation like a certified ass-hat and tried to "lighten the mood" with a little layoff humor. He told funny anecdotes of people close to retirement who probably wanted to get fired. But seriously folks, we were informed once he was done with the warm up act and got down to business, top performers shouldn't be worried. He told us that, for those that remained, our company would be a better place to work.
I don't know what the talking points he was working from, but it was inconsiderate in the extreme.
Festival of Funny Financials!
Okay. So I'll admit, I hoped I could hang out a shingle and be innundated by submissions to the carnival, and I was really happy with the people who submitted the first go around. I got a lot of spam the second round through, however, and that's about it! I did, however, get this legitimately funny article from Mad Kane over at Mad Kane's Humor Blog, about the perils of buying a home. Go and check it out!
Now I'm saying, "Well, that was a fun idea," but I'm letting it go to the wayside. I'm not posting every day right now, and that also brings my visibility down a few notches. I might try this again in the future, but for now, I'm putting this dog to bed. Thanks for all that submitted!
Tomorrow, I'll tell the gory financial details from my move-month.
Three Great Product Review Sites
I've been doing a lot of purchasing because of the new apartment. I'm pretty meticulous about researching items before I buy. I do this for everything from books to washing machines, and I've come up with a few sites that I consistently rely on when I'm about to lay down cash for an item. I thought I would share my most-travelled areas for reviews.
CNET
Looking for software or electronics or anything gadget-related? Go over to CNET to see what they have to say. CNET has professional reviewers who test and rate the products in a lab or 'natural' environment, and provide both written and video reviews. They also do great comparisons--whether of different cell phones or new Roomba generations. CNET shows it's WEB 2.0 capabilities by allowing its users to review, which often give you some real-world experiences.
Epinions
Epinions isn't as limited as CNET, in that it reviews just about everything. They don't have a professional review staff, but they have an extensive data base of reviews. The front page for any product is a list of stores, which I find a bit annoying (and rather gauche) but there is a link for both reviews ("View Reviews") and specifications ("View Details"), which is also helpful. I have no idea where they get the specifications from, but I've found them to be amazingly detailed. As with any review page, the reviewers often go off on tangents, but I've found it helpful to compare the problems people have had with products, and see if there are any glaring and troublesome patterns.
Amazon
I love Amazon. This is, of course, one of the few online businesses that survived and flourished after the first internet boom. Amazon started out as a bookstore, and obviously exploded from there. I don't know anything you can't buy, now.
Amazon is an excellent source for a lot of product information. It flourished because it successfully transformed into the most comprehensive WEB 2.0 product-based company out there. It supplies professional reviews on products, as well as hosts one of the best, in fact probably the best, user-based review systems. The key to their success, obviously, is the number of users. Hundreds of thousands of people review on Amazon, more than that read the reviews, and their ranking system helps good reviews rise to the top (that's a subjective and contentious statement, of course, but I usually find the top reviews to be helpful). The "lists" are often useful, or at least humorous, too, and while it's not exactly a review, and it took me a long time to try it, I actually enjoy the ability to personalize Amazon. I have entered a large number of books that I like into my "I OWN" folder, and it does a damn good job of bringing up books that I might like to read.
That's it. No big surprises for many, I'm sure, I just thought I would toss them out there.
Craigslist Gadgets
I've been trolling Craigslist for odds and ends for my apartment. I just got a new 6' oak bookcase for $30! I'm looking for an inexpensive desk, and a couple more pieces of furniture for the living room, but most of that can wait. I have all the big furniture, now, and I'm willing to wait for the best deals for everything else.
Here's a tip for bargain hunters: there are several tools you can use to keep an eye out for a particular item on Craigslist. Right now, I'm using a Google gadget on my iGoogle homepage to look for tables. Take a look here for a gadget to monitor for specific items (you have to specifiy the item in the "edit" portion of this Gadget, and here for a general Craigslist search gadget (you have to specifiy the city in the "edit" portion of this Gadget). You can also use Craigslist RSS feeds to monitor for specific items. I did that for a while, and then just installed the first Gadget I mention, because it's easier to change the item you're searching for.
Postings have been slow, and probably will remain that way for the next couple of weeks. I went to my first class last night for my MFA in Writing at Hamline. The students are all serious about their writing, and many of them have a good background, so that's encouraging. We reviewed the syllabus and did some get-to-know-you activities. I couldn't get excited for some reason. I think I'm coming down with something, actually. That would explain my general malaise. My girlfriend has a cold, so I probably got that from her.
Busy Weekend
I spent the weekend getting my place in order. My new abode doesn't have a dishwasher, which bummed me out a little, so I did a little research and discovered a brand of countertop dishwashers from a company called Danby. They sell for about $200 and hook up to your sink. I also found out that they aren't very reliable, however, so I was hesitant to buy one. After a bit of trolling on Craigslist, I discovered an ad by a woman who bought the Danby but never took it out of the box because she didn't know how to set it up. She moved to a place with an actual dishwasher, so it's been sitting in her garage for a year. I offered $50 and she accepted, so I brought it home on Thursday. After setting it up and running it a few times, I realized I didn't like all the pipes coming out of my sink basin, so I did some retrofitting of the fixtures and hooked it up under my sink. Now I'm happy with it! It works well--its not going to do the pots and pans, but it will do my daily dishes. After reading all the reviews, I think I know what can go wrong with it, and how to prevent most of the problems. Any repairs from worn-out parts are within my technical abilities, so I'll give it a go. If it lasts a year and a half, I'll consider it a worthy investment.
Quick Post To Catch Up
I've been busy getting my apartment up and running this week, so I haven't had time to post lately. I have some good news, however--there aren't going to be any layoffs in my area of the company. I have some friends in areas that are going to be hit hard, however, and they're worried.
Between the wedding and the car and the new apartment, I had to put money on my credit cards! It added up quickly. I thought I could hold off for a month or two, but it quickly became apparent that I need more furniture. My girlfriend hinted my apartment needs to be more grownup, and I agree. I bought a couch, to start. I got a nice deal on a new one for $500. I can pay it all off at the end of this month, I think, but it put me behind, AGAIN! This really speaks to my need to get an emergency fund going.
The book is still creeping towards completion. This is my first "free" weekend in a while, so I'm taking advantage of it and settling in. I'm turning down invites to go out, partly because I need to write, and partly because I don't have the money to do anything! My stretch goal is to finish the last chapter--I've been stuck on it for a few weeks now.
I'm going to write an article, soon, about my attempts to automate my life--everything from bank accounts to Roomba's. I have a lot of hints. This might be a one week series, actually.
That's all. My company is hosting a Luau with a real pig roast, today. This was planned before the mass firing was announced. Random snarky comments abound. My favorite thus far: "So is the pig symbolic for us?"
Festival of Funny Financials: #1
Welcome to the first annual Festival of Funny Financials! The funniest people are often the smartest ones in the room, the ones who understand an issue well enough to see the humor in it. I was impressed by the wit of our submitters this week, and felt they had a lot of wise commentary layered underneath the laughs. It affirmed my desire to get this carnival up and running. We need to take our finances seriously, but if a blogger can make us smile as we read along, it keeps our interest, and we get that much more out of the experience.
Before I get to the posts, a quick plug for Indebted2You: I'm a writer working his way out of debt, starting a graduate program in Creative Writing, finishing up a novel, and traversing my way through this modern financial wilderness. This blog keeps you updated on my life and financial trials/triumphs, as well as passes along any advice on money and budgeting that I can scrape together. If you want to subscribe, just click the below link and follow the instructions.Here are the submitters to the first Festival of Funny Financials! I honestly had a difficult time picking my favorite out the posts sent to me. Several of these sat for a moment in the honored "best of" spot, but in the end, I had a real LOL moment when I checked out The Digerati Life's post on people who make more money than she does via AdSense. Dude, we all here 'ya! Thanks for sharing, and thanks for the genuine laugh!
You know the drill. Thanks for stopping by!
This paragraph is actually an addendum to the post, because I finished writing everything at midnight on Saturday and got a post a few hours later. I thought the story deserved a bit of a highlight. Art Thailand sent this post about his experience trying to get his business up and running. It details his struggles with the amazingly complicated Thai banking system, and the trials he faced in website development. I thought I would stop reading this at several points, but my eyes got wider and wider as I traveled down the page. Give it time.Millionaire Mommy Next Door has the funnest article of the bunch, a piece that laments the author's inability to downsize her lifestyle, despite the desire to go green. This was written as a guest post by a certain Paige Anderson-Torgrimson. Along the same lines of eco-frustration, 21'st Century Citizen almost looses his eco-lunch to the new eco-craze, apparently a little ticked about Paris Hilton's less-than-genuine attempts to save the world. Finally, Money Is The Way gives us some humorous insight about how bankers are going crazy, but it's all good.
Back to the original post!
Another addendum! Eh, I'm new. I guess I have to wait until the next day to start the big post. Teaspoon Finance explains their financial faux pax when they describe how they ended up paying $250 for a financial book, "given" to them by a friend too into day trading...A few people sent me some lists that were just damn clever, and should give you a smile. College and Finance has this list of 32 weird scholarships almost anyone can get, although I don't think anyone could get them in one place with his fun insights! Ask The Advisor gets a guffaw for coming up with ten fictitious credit cards, along with terms of use and applicable APRs, and PowerWealth takes a moment to explains three simple steps to become dirt poor! I think I had him for a financial advisor, once. To finish off the first Festival, Currency Trading gives a well-written smiler detailing 11 reasons poker players make great Forex traders.
That's all for the first festival! I was very happy with the quality of the entries! I'm going to keep this biweekly until I get the hang of things, and then I'll probably make things weekly. Feel free to submit, and because humor is timeless, I'm happy to take backdated posts. Thanks for checking out the first edition of The Festival of Funny Financials and as always, I am Indebted2You!
A Very Short Post
I'm moved in and I love my new place! I have very few boxes unpacked, because a friend is getting married this weekend, and I'm helping out. She's a PhD student, and so the wedding is being run on a shoestring budget. We're all pitching in, decorating, etc. I just got a panicked call, because her photographer doesn't have a ride. Her photographer is actually an erotica photographer who does some incredibly risque nudes and other... works... concerning human sexuality. She testified in front of Congress last year on First Amendment Rights, actually. I have to go pick her up shortly! Eh. I don't have a shower curtain yet, and I'm about to figure out if I can get ready without one. Wish me luck!